Directed By: Shinichiró Watanabe, Motonobu Hori
Studio: BONES
Episode Count: 24
Audio: English, Japanese, German, French, Spanish
Subtitles: English, Japanese, German, French, Polish
Release Date: April 2019
Format: Digital Streaming
Licensed by: Netflix
Two girls from two very different backgrounds, connect one night over music. As people pass by paying no attention to them, the whole City will stop to hear them play one day, as Carole and Tuesday meet for the very first time. A series about following your passion, letting the music guide you and working hard to make it big in the music industry as musicians who create their own melodies and lyrics from scratch – a rarity in their time. This series is perfect for all you music lovers, as it promotes so many genres as well as giving some sort of insight into the music industry. Carole & Tuesdays’ lyrics are sure to stay with you for a very long time.
Well this was a complete surprise, I began watching this show fully expecting a happy go lucky series with little to no depth. Well I was gladly mistaken, as Carole & Tuesday had character development, plot and soundtracks that would stand out miles above many other and more well known shows out there. It actually felt like this could very easily be adapted into a live action, TV drama. Going from the initial poster, you wouldn’t think these two girls had very much in common and perhaps they wouldn’t have if it wasn’t for their music. Both are driven to make this duo work, even upon their first night meeting all they wished to do was make a song together. It was like an instant friendship between the pair. The idea seemed a bit forced at the start, but shows like this only get better as episodes progress – it just needed that forced kickstart to get it going.
So let’s begin with Tuesday, the pretty little white girl who ran away from home (a big ass mansion I might add) with her expensive Gibson guitar. Leaving her cushy lifestyle and political campaign focussed mother behind, Tuesday makes her way to Alba City (a play on Alba Records I presume) in order to pursue her music. However this girl has no idea just how to survive on her own, so luckily for her she runs into a kind hearted girl playing her keyboard on the bridge to passers by. And here we meet Carole, an orphan and refugee from Planet Earth – (oh by the way people, this show takes place on Mars. Yeah, its fairly futuristic and metropolitan, but of course there are massive wealth divisions between the people living on Mars.) Carole wants to have a music career and was just missing someone as talented as Tuesday by her side to make it. Carole is completely down to earth, hard working and driven. Together these two girls make some positive waves in the industry as they work their way up. However they also have their own rivals along the way.
Carole & Tuesdays music career gets a massive boost from a viral video of them practising a new song they wrote in a local venue, which they didn’t ‘exactly’ have permission to use. As their performance and escape goes viral, the girls soon get the attention of an experienced but out of practice agent. This series has countless high points, each episode was memorable in its own way. Whether for the original songs, the covers, the episode names, down to the performances in each episode – its truly captivating at times. The character development and plot could have just been a show all on its own, even without the incredible soundtrack. As we have Tuesday and her family drama with her mother running for President. Promoting a campaign that would see all refugees being sent back to Earth. A campaign that would also see Carole being directly affected. Carole is more focussed on her career, has survived this long in life without knowing her parents. Something that is later explored and very tastefully done in my opinion. With their newfound fame, it quickly attracted those that only wanted to be near her for whatever money and fame she had gotten. The dark side of humanity definitely showed its ugly head one or two times throughout the show.
The most interesting arc in this show came from when the girls were entered into a Singing Competition called ‘Mars Brightest’. Here they met and competed against Angela, a fashion model wanting to transition into music. This girl has a whole character plot of her own, one that ended up being far more complex and captivating than Carole & Tuesday’s storylines! And Angela was only one of the other contestants, each character in this show had their own impact on the overall experience. They each brought something to the overall plot. There are some terribly sad moments, but they add to the impact the show leaves on you. Layering that on top of an incredible music score, well that shit is going to stay with me for years to come. The only thing I wish was that this show had gotten a physical release from one of the UK’s Anime Distributors instead of Netflix. I would even settle for just a Vinyl of the shows soundtrack, as at the moment I just have a YouTube playlist to go from.
‘Carole & Tuesday’ is available in a number of language audios over on Netflix, including French, German, Japanese and English. I personally watched it in English and it was a very good dub, the songs were just beautiful. This series ran for 24 episodes and was created by studio BONES in commemoration of the studio’s 20th anniversary and the 10th anniversary of record label FlyingDog. The series had two directors, including the infamous Shinichiró Watanabe. Widely known for his anime works including Cowboy Bebop, Space Dandy and Kids on the Slope. Our second director was Motonobu Hori, who has had an extensive career and has done numerous jobs across titles including Steamboy, Spirited Away, BECK, Berserk: The Golden Age Arc trilogy and Napping Princess.
‘Carole & Tuesday’ is currently available to enjoy in full over on Netflix in the UK & Ireland! Make sure to check your region for more up to date information.
Overall: 10/10
